Recommended by: Rasananda Panda

Summary: First published in 1956, The Transfer of Power in India remains unsurpassed as the most detailed and comprehensive view from the inside of the transition from British rule to Indian independence in 1947. V. P. Menon’s rise in the colonial bureaucracy paralleled the growth of the nationalist movement in the subcontinent. In due time, he was offering legal and political solutions as negotiations between the British government and Indian nationalists unfolded. Indeed, he drafted the settlement that served as the basis for the transfer of power to India and Pakistan. In this sweeping narrative, Menon recounts every twist and turn of the freedom struggle between 1939 and 1947—the changing tactics of British delegations and the Indian movement, the considerations that shaped decision-making, the factionalism among Indian nationalists, and of course the violence of the Partition that followed Independence. The Transfer of Power in India has been invaluable for scholars and general readers since its publication. This revised and updated edition carries a new introduction by Partha Chatterjee that insightfully contextualises the work as well as the author’s life.

Contents:

The Goal of British Policy 29
All-India Federation—A Lost Ideal 69
War and the Deadlock 87
The August Offer and After 115
The Cripps Mission 148
The Stalemate Continues 174
A New Approach 202
The Simla Conference 222
The General Elections 257
The Cabinet Mission I 277
The Cabinet Mission II 297
The Interim Government I 324
The Interim Government II 347
The Constituent Assembly 364
The Evolution of a Plan 397
Acceptance of the Plan 419
The Implementation of the Plan 436
The Birth of Two Dominions 454
The Aftermath of Partition 468
Conclusion 487
Appendix I: Extracts from a Report of the Punjab Legislative Assembly Debates, 11 March 1941 495
Appendix II: Broadcast Speech on the Viceroy, Lord Wavell, 14 June 1945 513
Appendix III: Statement Made in Parliament by the Secretary of State for India, L. S. Amery, 14 June 1945 517
Appendix IV: Statement of the Cabinet Mission and the Viceroy, 16 May 1946 521
Appendix V: The Secretary of State’s Broadcast, 16 May 1946 533
Appendix VI: Lord Wavell’s Broadcast, 17 May 1946 537
Appendix VII: Statement by Sir Stafford Cripps at a Press Conference on 16 May 1946 540
Appendix VIII: Cabinet Mission Press Conference of 17 May 1946 545
Appendix IX: Statement Made by Prime Minister Attlee in the House of Commons, 20 February 1947 567
Appendix X: Statement Made by His Majesty’s Government, 3 June 1947 571
Appendix XI: The Indian Independence Act, 1947 579
Appendix XII: Congress Comments on the Draft Independence Bill, Prepared by V. P. Menon, with Nehru’s Corrections and Signature 600
Books and Publications Consulted 610